Teen points Ohio authorities to bodies of 2 others

OTTAWA, Ohio (AP) — Two teenage brothers who had been reported missing were found dead after authorities were directed to their bodies by a third teen, who remained in police custody and was to appear in court Friday on a grand theft auto charge, officials said.

The three teens — 14-year-old Blaine Romes, 17-year-old Blake Romes and 17-year-old Michael Fay — lived together with their mothers inside a trailer home in Ottawa in northwest Ohio, neighbors said.

The teens had been the subject of an Amber Alert issued Thursday morning after a relative returned to the home and found a crime scene, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said. A car also was reported missing from the trailer park.

Fay was taken into custody Thursday afternoon at a gas station in Columbus, about 115 miles away, after stopping to ask for directions, authorities said. He was driving the missing car, police said.

He was due in juvenile court Friday afternoon on a warrant for grand theft of a motor vehicle. He hadn't been charged with anything else. He couldn't be reached for comment because he was in custody.

Fay told officers that the Romes brothers were dead and gave the location of their bodies, according to the sheriff's office, which released few details about the case.

Putnam County Sheriff Mike Chandler said the bodies were found in different locations. He declined to give additional information on what happened, saying he was limited because those involved are juveniles.

Chandler said authorities were waiting for autopsies to be completed to determine the causes of the boys' deaths, which could come as soon as Friday.

Neighbors at the trailer park say the women who lived there both worked overnight shifts. Brad Bailey, who lives across the street, said he saw the women outside pacing back and forth for much of the day after the boys were reported missing Thursday. He said he had seen all three boys laughing and joking together in the past.

Classmates and friends mourned the brothers as news of their deaths spread through Ottawa, a village of 4,500 people south of Toledo.

The younger brother, Blaine, was supposed to join his classmates early Thursday on an eighth-grade class trip to Washington.

Kevin Brinkman, superintendent of Ottawa-Glandorf Schools, said the trip went ahead as scheduled. He said a steady stream of students had been meeting with counselors at the two schools the boys attended.

Blaine was on the basketball and track teams, Brinkman said.

Blake was a junior at Ottawa-Glandorf High School, where he was involved in track and choir, principal Jayson Selgo said Friday. The school has about 530 students, and word of his death traveled fast in the community.

"He was very well respected and liked by the students and faculty, as well. A very friendly kid," Selgo said.

Selgo said counselors were made available in the district for students and staff who might need help coping with the news.

"I think everyone is trying to get through this difficult time in their own way," he said.

The school posted a notice on its website Friday saying "our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Blake and Blaine."

Selgo said Fay did not attend the high school.

The trailer park, surrounded by farm fields on the edge of the village, has a mix of well-kept trailers with neatly trimmed yards and other lots that are overgrown. The trailer where the families live has weeds growing in the flower bed, broken blinds and an autographed football in the window. In the back, there's a motorcycle parked in a shed and a smashed barbecue grill lid and other discarded items on the ground.

Angela Weber, who moved in next door to the family two months ago, said it's a peaceful community.

"We live in a small town for a reason," she said.

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Texas Fertilizer Explosion EMS Worker Charged With Owning Explosive Device

A first responder who helped treat victims of the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, last month was arrested and charged today with possessing an explosive device.

The arrest came on the same day that Texas authorities opened a criminal investigation into the April 17 explosion.

Paramedic Bryce Reed, who works with the West, Texas, EMS and served as incident commander during the response to the explosion, appeared in federal court in Waco, Texas, this morning for alleged possession of a destructive device.

According to the charges filed against Reed, the McLennan County Sheriff's Office was called to a residence in Abbot, Texas, on Tuesday because of a possible destructive device, and arrived to find powders, metals and canisters filled with bomb-making materials.

An official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms said in an affidavit that officials found a metal pipe, canisters of fuses, a lighter, a digital scale, a plastic spoon, coils of metal and several pounds of chemicals at the residence and determined that they belonged to Reed. The resident of the home said that he had unknowingly accepted the materials from Reed on April 26.

Reed later admitted to possessing the materials, the court documents said.

Reed was arrested Thursday and charged today with one count of possessing a destructive device. He had his initial appearance in court this morning. The attorney appointed to defend Reed, Johnathan Sibley, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reed was not charged for any crime connected to the plant explosion, which killed 15 individuals and burned much of the property in West, and authorities would not say whether they believed there was any connection between Reed's arrest and the explosion.

His next court appearance will be on Wednesday. Reed faces up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

The charges against Reed came shortly ahead of an announcement from the Texas Department of Public Safety, which said this morning that it would use a criminal investigation to ensure that the explosion had been "looked at from every angle," according to a statement from TDP director Steven McCraw.

"This disaster has severely impacted the community of West, and we want to ensure that no stone goes unturned and that all the facts related to this incident are uncovered," McCraw said, according to ABC News affiliate WFAA.

McCraw said that the department would not answer any questions or provide any other details about the investigation at this time.

Officials in Texas originally said that the investigation into the explosion would be finished by May 10, according to WFAA. The State Fire Marshal department said that investigators have interviewed "almost 300 people," and followed 160 leads in their initial investigation, according to the report.

The fire marshal has not yet released a cause for the explosion.

Man charged in deaths of woman, her toddler, 2 men

This family photo provided by Wilma Pettijohn shows her granddaughter Kaylie Bailey. Kaylie's body was discovered Monday at the Ottawa-area farm where she had gone to drop off her daughter, Lana Leigh Bailey, with a friend. Crews were searching Friday, May 10, 2013, for Lana, 18 months, who is missing and presumed dead. (AP Photo/Courtesy Wilma Pettijohn)

This recent but undated family photo shows 18-month-old Lana Bailey. The bodies of a woman and two men who were found slain on an eastern Kansas farm were those of a young mother who went missing last week with her daughter, Lana, and two men who lived there, authorities said Wednesday, May 8, 2013. (AP Photo/Family Photo)

In this May 9, 2013, photo investigators work around a farmhouse near Ottawa, Kan., during a search for 18-month-old Lana Bailey who is missing. Crews resumed their search Friday for the girl who is presumed dead after the bodies of her mother, Kaylie Bailey, and two men were found at an eastern Kansas farm. (AP Photo/The Kansas City Star, Keith Myers)

Kyle Flack also faces charges in the death of the woman's young daughter, whose body hasn't been found. Authorities say they presume 18-month-old Lana Leigh Bailey is dead based on evidence they have and that the search for her remains continues.

Flack was charged with capital murder in the deaths of 21-year-oldKaylie Bailey, Lana Bailey and 30-year-old Andrew Stout, according to the complaint. He was charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of those three as well as 31-year-old Steven White.

Franklin County Attorney Stephen Hunting said prosecutors haven't determined whether to seek the death penalty in the case. Hunting said the decision is not something that authorities "take lightly."

Flack also faces charges of rape and criminal possession of a firearm. The rape charge is related to Kaylie Bailey.

He remained jailed on a $10 million bond Friday after an afternoon court appearance in which he was formally charged. Another hearing is scheduled for next week. He was appointed an attorney,Ronald Evans of Topeka, in court. Evans' office was closed late Friday afternoon.

Flack was arrested earlier this week and was being held on suspicion of first-degree murder in the deaths. He previously served prison time for shooting a former employer in 2005 after being fired, according to court records.

Authorities still are not commenting on a motive in the deaths. Hunting said doing so "could jeopardize" the ongoing investigation.

The body of Kaylie Bailey of Olathe was discovered Monday at the Ottawa-area farm where she had gone to drop off her daughter with her friend, Stout.

Friends who went to check on Stout found Bailey's body and called 911. Authorities later found Stout's body as well as White's. Stout and White both lived on the farm.

White was killed between April 20 and April 28, and Bailey, her daughter and Stout were killed between April 28 and Monday, according to the criminal complaint.

Authorities haven't said how they died. Hunting would only say that a firearm was used against all the victims, but didn't elaborate on whether that meant they all were fatally shot.

Crews on foot, horseback and all-terrain vehicles resumed their search Friday for 18-month-old Lana Bailey. A dive team also searched a pond on the farm.

Franklin County Sheriff Jeffrey Richards has said the girl is presumed dead, but has not released any details. On Friday, he said more than 150 investigators were following up on leads.

"We plan to continue until we get a full resolution to this case," Richards said.

N. Calif. officers seek triple homicide suspect

This undated photo released by the Shasta County Sheriff's office shows Shane Miller, 45, who is suspected of a triple homicide at his home in rural Northern California. Shasta County Sheriff's Lt. Tom Campbell said Miller remained on the loose on Wednesday, May, 8, 2013, a day after the killings six miles west of Shingletown. (AP Photo/Shasta County Sheriff)

PETROLIA, Calif. (AP) — SWAT teams from three counties and a team from the California Department of Corrections, as well asfederal law enforcement officials and local police have joined the hunt for a Northern California man wanted in the killing of his wife and two young daughters.

The extra help — which includes two helicopters and an armored vehicle — comes as law enforcement officials continued Saturday to search through the rugged terrain of California's remote North Coast for Shane Franklin Miller, said Humboldt County sheriff's Lt.Wayne Hanson, a spokesman for the department.

Miller, 45, is suspected of slaying his family Tuesday night in the rural community of Shingletown, then fleeing to Humboldt County.

Miller — who is considered armed and extremely dangerous — grew up in the area and knows the thick forests of the region very well, officials said.

Authorities were searching for Miller through a rugged wilderness area, much of it federal land, with poor roads and limited access.

"This guy is very unpredictable, he's a very violent person. We need to get him in custody," Hanson said.

Area residents were being asked to report any break-ins or other unusual activities. They were also being asked to stay inside once night falls and to keep their doors locked.

Investigators have recovered Miller's pickup truck after it was found abandoned Wednesday night near Petrolia, about 200 miles west of the home that Miller shared with his wife, Sandy, 34, and daughters, Shelby, 8, and Shasta, 5.

There have been no sightings of Miller since the truck was found, officials said.

Miller is suspected of slaying his family Tuesday night in the rural community of Shingletown, then fleeing to Humboldt County, where low fog and dense brush offer plenty of cover. His mother told The Associated Press she had no idea whether her son and daughter-in-law had suffered marital problems or why Miller might turn on his family.

Meanwhile, in Shasta County, detectives searched the home where the killings took place for evidence and clues as to where Miller might have been headed, said Lt. Dave Kent of the Shasta County Sheriff's Office.

In 1996, Miller was convicted of felony cultivation of marijuana in a county known worldwide for the high quality pot grown in the same hard-to-reach forests authorities now are combing.

In 2002, Miller was charged with making and selling marijuana for distribution, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing a machine gun and money laundering, according to court records. He pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a gun and served 46 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, court records show.PETROLIA, Calif. (AP) — SWAT teams from three counties and a team from the California Department of Corrections, as well asfederal law enforcement officials and local police have joined the hunt for a Northern California man wanted in the killing of his wife and two young daughters.

The extra help — which includes two helicopters and an armored vehicle — comes as law enforcement officials continued Saturday to search through the rugged terrain of California's remote North Coast for Shane Franklin Miller, said Humboldt County sheriff's Lt.Wayne Hanson, a spokesman for the department.

Miller, 45, is suspected of slaying his family Tuesday night in the rural community of Shingletown, then fleeing to Humboldt County.

Miller — who is considered armed and extremely dangerous — grew up in the area and knows the thick forests of the region very well, officials said.

Authorities were searching for Miller through a rugged wilderness area, much of it federal land, with poor roads and limited access.

"This guy is very unpredictable, he's a very violent person. We need to get him in custody," Hanson said.

Area residents were being asked to report any break-ins or other unusual activities. They were also being asked to stay inside once night falls and to keep their doors locked.

Investigators have recovered Miller's pickup truck after it was found abandoned Wednesday night near Petrolia, about 200 miles west of the home that Miller shared with his wife, Sandy, 34, and daughters, Shelby, 8, and Shasta, 5.

There have been no sightings of Miller since the truck was found, officials said.

Miller is suspected of slaying his family Tuesday night in the rural community of Shingletown, then fleeing to Humboldt County, where low fog and dense brush offer plenty of cover. His mother told The Associated Press she had no idea whether her son and daughter-in-law had suffered marital problems or why Miller might turn on his family.

Meanwhile, in Shasta County, detectives searched the home where the killings took place for evidence and clues as to where Miller might have been headed, said Lt. Dave Kent of the Shasta County Sheriff's Office.

In 1996, Miller was convicted of felony cultivation of marijuana in a county known worldwide for the high quality pot grown in the same hard-to-reach forests authorities now are combing.

In 2002, Miller was charged with making and selling marijuana for distribution, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing a machine gun and money laundering, according to court records. He pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a gun and served 46 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, court records show.

Family keeps still-hospitalized bomb victim upbeat